Be a proper Taoist priest in The Condor Heroes

Chapter 75 Revenge

Su Yan and the other walked slowly along the streets and alleys in silence.

As Su Yan approached the city gate of Gucheng, just as he was about to step out of the city, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a strange figure rushing past out of the corner of his eye.

He was an old man with ragged clothes and disheveled hair and beard. He walked with a staggering gait but moved extremely fast. He exuded a sinister and violent aura. He seemed crazy, but his internal strength was terrifyingly profound. He was definitely not an ordinary wandering swordsman.

Su Yan suddenly stopped, his brows furrowing slightly. This aura was extremely strange; though chaotic, it possessed a unique domineering quality. Coupled with its eccentric and mad nature, it was obvious who this person was.

Besides Ouyang Feng, the Western Poison, Su Yan couldn't think of anyone else.

Ouyang Feng was already known for his erratic and unpredictable behavior; he should have been heading towards Zhongnan Mountain with Guo Jing and Yang Guo. How could he suddenly appear in this small Gucheng?

"Yan-ge, what's wrong?"

Seeing Su Yan turn around and look at the crowd behind him, Su Ye couldn't help but ask.

With surprise and doubt swirling in his heart, Su Yan immediately abandoned the idea of ​​leaving the city and turned to Su Ye in a low voice, "That old man's aura was strange just now. Let's go back and take a look."

Although Su Ye had doubts, she still nodded obediently and followed closely behind Su Yan, retracing the direction the old man had left in. The two walked briskly and soon arrived at the martial arts contest arena in the west of the city, where the place was still bustling with people, surrounded by onlookers.

On the arena, Chai Xiu stood proudly, holding a long whip in her hand.

Just now, she was fighting a challenger who looked like a scholar. The scholar was full of enthusiasm but had a shallow foundation in martial arts. Chai Xiu only swung her whip a few times before accurately wrapping her wrist around his wrist and gently pulling him off the stage.

The crowd below the stage was abuzz with discussion. Some praised Chai Xiu's extraordinary skills, while others secretly scorned him. The noise was deafening.

Just as Chai Xiu was preparing to welcome the next challenger, she saw someone in the crowd suddenly freeze.

A disheveled figure slowly emerged from the crowd. There was no mournful roar, no violent charge; he simply walked calmly, like an ordinary passerby, stepping onto the arena.

"Xiuer".

The man spoke, his voice flat and emotionless, devoid of any sorrow or joy, and showing no trace of hatred.

Chai Xiu looked at the man in front of her, whose face was completely disfigured and whose clothes were tattered. His face was so damaged that it was impossible to recognize his original appearance, but his voice and his figure made her heart tremble.

She stared blankly for a long time before realizing that the person in front of her was Liu Jingyuan, the one she had caused to destroy her family. Her face turned ashen instantly.

Liu Jingyuan stood before her, his gaze calm as he looked at her, a mixture of love and hatred churning within his eyes, writhing in agony in his heart. His lips trembled, a thousand words stuck in his throat, finally coalescing into two words, as light as a wisp of smoke: "Why?"

Chai Xiu snapped out of her daze, her initial shock fading, replaced by a look of anger, embarrassment, and a cruel sneer. She curled her lip and said coldly, "Tsk, why? Don't you know perfectly well what I want? Just give it to me, and I'll marry you right away."

Upon hearing this, Liu Jingyuan suddenly chuckled softly. His laughter was dry and hoarse, like the scraping of a broken gong. It was unclear whether he was laughing at his own naivety and foolishness or at her heartlessness and ingratitude.

For five years, he poured his heart out to her, offering her all his tenderness, his life savings, and even the hopes of his family, believing that sincerity could be reciprocated.

In the end, all the so-called affection couldn't compare to a tattered martial arts manual.

For the sake of a secret manual, he colluded with villains, causing his grandfather to die tragically and his parents to perish. The once-great Liu family fell apart overnight, leaving him only a crippled cripple, disfigured and destitute, like a stray dog.

He had lied to himself countless times, saying that she was forced into it and that there was still a place for him in her heart.

But the greed and ruthlessness in her eyes at that moment completely crushed his last shred of hope. Love turned to ashes, hatred gnawed at his bones, yet it carried a tragic sense of irreversible loss.

The light in his eyes gradually faded, leaving only a desolate, lifeless wasteland.

He slowly lowered his eyes, his fingertips clenched tightly, his palms bleeding from his nails, yet he felt no pain. All the obsession, longing, and resentment ultimately subsided into a deathly stillness.

When he looked up again, he looked at Chai Xiu and softly uttered, "This is the last time I'll call you Xiu'er."

Clang~

As soon as he finished speaking, he slowly drew the dark-colored longsword from his waist. The blade was simple and unadorned, an heirloom of the Liu family.

He brought his fingertips together and quickly pressed several major acupoints around his body. In an instant, his blood and qi surged wildly, his skin turned a strange crimson, his eyes were instantly stained with blood, and his aura surged at a visible speed.

This is the Liu family's ancestral blood-burning secret technique, which forcibly elevates cultivation by burning away life force.

Liu Jingyuan was originally only at the third-rate level, built up by resources. After using the Blood Burning Secret Technique, his blood and qi boiled, and his cultivation level briefly soared to the mid-second-rate level. His powerful internal energy flowed into the black longsword through his meridians, causing the blade to tremble slightly and emit a low hum.

He remained silent, his face devoid of any anger or ferocity, only a deathly calm. Yet, the moment he drew his sword to attack, the force of his blade was as heavy and fierce as a mountain. Every strike was aimed directly at Chai Xiu's vital points, a desperate fight for his life. Each swing of the sword was a frantic burning of his last remaining life force.

Chai Xiu was terrified. She hurriedly circulated her inner strength, her wrist trembled, and the long whip in her hand shot out like a snake, the tip of the whip carrying a sharp wind, aiming directly at Liu Jingyuan's wrist holding the knife, trying to force him back first.

Liu Jingyuan neither dodged nor avoided the whip, letting it graz his shoulder and leave a bloody mark. However, he did not slow down at all, and slashed fiercely with his long sword, the blade energy shattering the air and slashing straight at Chai Xiu's waist.

Chai Xiu was shocked and quickly dodged to the side, his long whip curling back to wrap around the blade, trying to disarm him.

"clang!"

The crisp sound of metal clashing echoed across the arena. Liu Jingyuan's internal energy surged, and he suddenly exerted force with his wrist. His long sword trembled violently, directly knocking away the long whip, and the whip was cleaved in a gap by the sword energy.

He stepped forward, lunging straight ahead, his long sword slashing diagonally downwards with lightning speed. Chai Xiu could only stagger backward, her toes barely touching the ground as she retreated hastily. Several strands of her long hair were snapped off by the wind from the blade as she narrowly avoided this fatal blow.

The two instantly became entangled in combat, their blades flashing and whips whipping against each other, the force of the wind sweeping across the arena and shattering the wooden planks into countless fragments.

Liu Jingyuan launched a series of attacks without any regard for defense, employing only offense and no defense. His attacks—slashing, chopping, thrusting, and stabbing—were all aimed at mutual destruction. Chai Xiu's long whip was known for its agility and cunning, with its exquisite techniques of wrapping, circling, sweeping, and striking. However, facing the fearless Liu Jingyuan, she was constantly restrained, unable to fully utilize her agile whip skills and forced to passively defend, retreating step by step.

After dozens of rounds, Chai Xiu's breathing became erratic, her forehead was covered in cold sweat, and she was filled with fear and apprehension.

She never imagined that Liu Jingyuan, who used to be so obedient to her and had only mediocre cultivation, would suddenly unleash such terrifying combat power.

Liu Jingyuan's shoulders and arms had been lashed with several bloody gashes by the whip, his clothes soaked in blood, but he seemed oblivious. His eyes were bloodshot, and his inner strength continued to flow out. His longsword attacks became increasingly fierce, the blade light so dense that it completely enveloped Chai Xiu.

In a moment of quick thinking, Chai Xiu lashed out with his long whip, aiming straight for Liu Jingyuan's face, trying to force him to defend himself.

Liu Jingyuan didn't even lift his eyelids, his head slightly turned away, letting the whip tip brush against his cheek, and then thrust his long knife straight at Chai Xiu's heart.

Chai Xiu's face turned pale, and she hurriedly blocked with her whip.

With a "whoosh," the long whip was cleaved in two by the long sword, and half of the whip flew off the stage.

Taking advantage of the opening, Liu Jingyuan stepped forward, made a fist with his left hand, and slammed it heavily into Chai Xiu's chest, carrying with him the violent internal force of his burning blood.

Chai Xiu coughed up blood and flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the center of the arena. She was too weak to get up and could only lie on the ground, staring in terror at Liu Jingyuan who was approaching step by step.

Liu Jingyuan, carrying a blood-stained ink knife, walked step by step toward Chai Xiu, who was lying on the ground, panting heavily from her injuries. His voice was calm without a ripple, yet every word was piercing.

"You wiped out my entire family for a sword manual? Chai Xiu, you really are something else."